Import desktop layouts into a newer release of Matlab

I have created and saved two personalized layouts for my Matlab Desktop,

Now, however, I have installed a newer Matlab release and I would like to import these saved layouts from the old release to the new. How would I do so?

[Rik]

I assume you checked the matlabpref file? That is where I would expect such a definition to be stored. But I would also expected this to be carried over on install, and the existence of your question implies that isn't the case either.

[Matt J]

Well, I'm interested more broadly as well how I would transfer these definitions to a different computer. Or, if I have several Matlab installations on the same computer already, how might I import from one installation to another.

[dpb]

Would be nice to know and figure out how one goes about changing/using such.

In 30+ years with MATLAB, I've never messed with saving a desktop configuration, don't even know when that was introduced.

I've never had but one that I used and, until the last upgrade to R2021b (yeah, I'm pretty slow in upgrading, too) it seemed like that showed up as the previous had used. But, stuff was way different with R2021b with everything all docked in the command window and the editor not using tabs for files, etc., ... I recall it took quite a bit of messing around and having to search Answers on how to make things behave to finally get it back to something usable again, so it would be agoodthing™ to be able to save and restore that the next upgrade instead of having to go through the pain again. I really wish they would just leave the UI alone.

Answer 1

[kei hin]

I think you can back up a layout on the new version of MATLAB, then check your prefdir to see which file has been added, and then replace or add the new file with the old file of the layout.But it seems like a simple question, and the experts are still a little confused, am I not understanding the content of the question? I am in R2017b.

[Matt J]

I think you can back up a layout on the new version of MATLAB

I assume you meant, "on the old version of MATLAB".

That does seem to work. Saving a layout results in an appropriately named .xml file in the prefdir, which I was then able to copy over to the prefdir of a different Matlab instatallion. I wonder, though, if there is a method that involves less 'hackery'.

[kei hin]

I mean that you can find out which file stores layout information by watching the file change after backing up the layout. Because I have encountered a situation where I know where the file is stored on the old version, but I can't find it on the new version, so I need to make a backup on the new version to find out where the file is. Of course, this approach makes sense on both old and new versions of MATLAB. I probably can't find a better way until developers add the ability to transfer layouts